GOVERNING is the nation's leading media platform covering politics, policy and management for state and local government leaders. Recognized as the most credible and authoritative voice in its field, GOVERNING provides nonpartisan news, insight and analysis on such issues as public finance, transportation, economic development, health, energy, the environment and technology.
GOVERNING magazine began publication in 1987 and has a circulation of approximately 85,000. The core of GOVERNING's readership consists of elected, appointed and career officials in state and local government, including governors, mayors, county executives, city and county council members, state legislators, executives of state and local agencies, and those holding professional government positions such as attorneys, public accountants, engineers and educators.

Nationally, state and local governments employed about 7.4 million full-time equivalent (FTE) workers in 2014. That's approximately 232 public employees for every 10,000 Americans, according to Governing calculations of Census survey data. Including teachers and those working in education, the total more than doubles to about 16.2 million public employees (excluding federal government) nationwide. Across states, government employment statistics vary greatly. Unique circumstances tend to account for high or very low concentrations of public employment. Wyoming, for example, employs the most public employees per capita largely due to the public hospitals that it operates. It's followed by Alaska, which has far more natural resources and highways workers than other states. The following table lists numbers of state and local full-time equivalent (FTE) employees per 10,000 residents. Education employment accounts for roughly half the workforce, so it’s excluded from these calculations. How responsibilities are divided between states and their localities varies considerably, so combined state and local government employment provides for a more comprehensive measure than totals for only state government.